BY JIM MISUNAS

jmisunas@gbtribune.com

HAYS – The Hays Eagles successfully used an illegal pitcher to beat the Great Bend Chiefs 4-2 in Wednesday's Legion baseball game.

Hays Eagle pitcher Brady Kreutzer pitched illegally after throwing 102 pitches Saturday against Rossville. Kreutzer was required to wait four days before pitching again or face a suspension. Eagles coach Dustin Schumacher ignored the pitching restriction rule to earn the victory.

The American Legion rules state that when the player violates the pitch count rule the player and the coach are ineligible until reinstated by the Kansas American Legion Baseball Committee.

Ironically, the Hays High Indians earned a high-school forfeit victory earlier this spring when Great Bend inserted a pitcher without the required rest.

The AAA Eagles (13-4) scored three unearned runs to edge the Chiefs. Chiefs’ pitcher Townshend Kurth was a hard-luck loser after yielding one earned run. Kurth delivered three hits.

The teams are likely to be paired in a future AAA Zone tournament. The Chiefs (15-6) play at the Salina Falcons Saturday.

Alex Schremmer scored a third-inning run on an error after back-to-back singles by Schremmer and Townshend Kurth, who delivered three hits.

A two-out error led to two unearned fourth-inning runs. Palmer Hutchison scored on an error and William Sennett singled home Tate Garcia.

Kreutzer scored on a fifth-inning sacrifice fly by Hutchison for a 3-1 lead. Kurth singled home Riley Smith in the seventh inning for a 3-2 score. Pitcher Colby Dreiling retired Carson Smith to work out of trouble.

Trey Riggs drove home Jamison Martin for a valuable eighth-inning insurance run thanks to an error for a 4-2 final.

Eagles William Sennett, Tate Garcia, Brock Lummus, Colby Dreiling and Brady Kreutzer threw innings.

GB Chiefs  001 000 100 – 2 5 3

Hays  000 210 10x – 4 10 3

Kurth, Soupiset (8) and Hall. Sennett, Garcia (3), Lummus (4), Dreiling (7), Kreutzer (9) and Lummus, Kreutzer (4), Lummus (9). W—Lummus. L—Kurth. 2B—GB—Kurth.